[PAX East 2016] Super Mutant Alien Assault preview: Dub step and robot pep

Sometimes I just like to veg out with video games. Anything clicker-related, preferably, or an endless runner. Sometimes I just want to grab a controller or mouse and let my muscle-memory take over instead of trying to solve my way through puzzles or deep dialog. Sometimes I like to shoot endless waves of enemies, or rhythmically hop across platforms. Sometimes I just want to see pixelated explosions.

Super Mutant Alien Assault might end up satisfying that, if my PAX East demo time was any indication, but with one extra caveat: I can do all of that with another person.

SMAA seems made for lazy Sunday afternoons. It doesn’t require a ton of skill to master; just jump around a randomly-generated room, shoot bad guys, move a battery to a container or flip a switch, and move on to the next area.

Done. Simple. Boom.

The visuals are retro-poppy, with tons of bright color and pixelated effects. The music is as dubstep as can be, working well with the blips and bleeps of the on-screen action. The aliens look like aliens and the heroes look like little boxy robots. Weapons drop through the stages, allowing us to switch them on impulse. Want a machine gun? Sure. A crazy boomerang-like energy frisbee? Why not. Defensive skills and special attacks fill out the roster of advantages we have as we try to protect the humans in cryostasis.

Having a second player on board sets this apart from other Super Crate Box-like games, as the two of us will somewhat work together to clear the room, while at the same time doing our best to grab the optimal weapon loot. Lots of “oh man, crap, revive me!” is shouted as we’re destroyed, until we finally stay alive long enough to make it to through the swarms of enemies.

And then it all repeats, over and over again.

And muscle memory sets in, numbness takes over our bodies, we sink back into our chairs and let our hands do whatever it is they do to clear countless levels at a time. There’s enough variety in the combination of stage tasks and enemies that it manages to not feel overly repetitive.

On a loud show floor, and after seeing some intense VR experiences, Super Mutant Alien Assault is a fresh palate cleanser. Bringing a friend along for the ride will only exponentially multiply that at home.

SMAA is currently in Steam early access.